Law students push for clean-up of station, threaten legal action

By Himanshu Nitnaware

They’ve approached Permanent Lok Adalat drawing attention to the ill-maintained premises of the city’s railway facility

For the Pune railway station, it has been admittedly a losing battle in trying to maintain some standard of hygiene

and cleanliness on its premises. But now, perhaps for the first time, it faces the threat of a litigation over its inability to maintain acceptable standard of sanitation and nattiness, with three law students dragging it to the Permanent Lok Adalat.

Last week, the railway authorities finally responded to the accusations made in the case filed by the law students in August, terming their submissions vague and without raising any specific issues. They insisted that with 200 workers deployed over three shifts through contractors and a spend of Rs 25 lakh a month, regular monitoring of the work and slapping of fine, the Railways is doing its bit to maintain the premises.


This was stated in response to video and pictorial evidence produced by the complainants, Devaangini Telang, Shruti Topkar and Nikhil Joglekar, to back their case. They’ve complained about the state of the toilets and water taps (both for general use and drinking) on the platforms, the foot-overbridges and other infrastructures at the station.


Telang pointed to the stinky toilets and said, “The stench is simply intolerable and definitely not good for the health of the commuters.” She also found the number of toilets inadequate, particularly those dedicated for the physically challenged.

Topkar worried about the filthy platforms. “Garbage bags and garbage are strewn all over the place. They are piled around the drinking water booths and also in other areas,” she underscored. She also took exception to the betel stains that adorn the walls and floors of platforms and foot-overbridges, betraying the unhealthy habit of spitting by travellers and other users of the premises.

For Joglekar, stray dogs roaming the platforms are a matter of concern, both in terms of danger and also hygiene. He found other issues too. “The railway tracks are waterlogged. There is moss gathering on roofs of platforms. Overall it is a picture of grubbiness and the unhygienic,” he said. He has provided photographic evidence of these complaints to the Permanent Lok Adalat.

The complainants prayed for more toilets and their better maintenance, coupled with vigilant punitive action against the violators. They also wanted the authorities to work towards preventing animals from straying into the station premises.

Speaking to Mirror, the local Railways spokesperson, Manoj Zanwar, reiterated the response given to the complainants. “Efforts are constantly made to clean the premises and maintain hygiene. The concerned staff are fined on the spot if found to have been negligent. The railway station is working round the clock and the difference is visible,” he insisted, while also appealing to passenger to help the staff maintain cleanliness by not throwing garbage or spitting at the premises.